The Shadow Knight
by K. Fang-sama
Summary: Shadow is a hero 1 day, but 2/3 people he saved had died. With their child in an orphanage, his actions are based on the story told to him by his oldest friend,... Maria. Hope u like it! Sonamy, knuxouge. rating may change.
1. fuming smoke

This was really hard to do, so I hope you like it!

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"The Shadow Knight;  
Chapter One:  
Fuming Smoke"

"Will you just shut up!" I yelled at Sonic. I was annoyed.

"It's not my fault if I'm better than you." Sonic said. I didn't want to hear this, so I left Tails' house.

I came over to talk about Eggman, but Sonic, and Knuckles weren't there, and they had most of the information. I didn't want to come back at a different time, since I've learned that doing so would interrupt something they called fun, and I would get dragged into it. I had no such plans.

Cream had asked me to play ping pong with her. I said: "No," but then she went begging with that pout that, apparently, a lot of little girls had, saying: "Please, Mr. Shadow," in that innocent voice of hers.

At the time, I was looking directly at her, and the look was a weakness. So, I played with her, she was good, so I didn't have to go easy on her, and since she wasn't competetive, I thought I was beginning to have fun, until I heard, none other than, Sonic.

"Having fun, Shadow?" He asked, smuggly. It was that one question that surprised me so much, I missed the ball. After that, Sonic challenged me to a game. Now, because we were getting competetive, things were getting out of hand. Sonic made me angry out of the compliment: "At least _I'm_ the better person,... at least _I'm_ the hero." MY ASS! If he was a better person, he'd be less obnoxious.

Anyways, I'm just walking around Central City, trying to blow off the steam, that Sonic had just given me. Nothing helped. I took deep beaths through my nose, deciding not to let my anger out through yelling, like Knuckles would. That sanity was still in me.

"Hiya!" I heard someone say to me. I turned my head to see, none other than Rouge.

"Not now, Rouge." I told her.

"Sonic pulled a fast one, again?" She questioned.

"Too fast, for my taste." Rouge knew me well, and she knows when it's Sonic bothering me.

"Well, I'm heading over there. I'll give him a headlock, to make say sorry." She offered.

"On video?" I asked.

"Is there any other way?" She asked. I smirked. Watching him beg for mercy was always a way to cheer me up, and she knew it. "Well, see ya!" She said, flying off.

I continued to walk in the same direction as before,... I was still in no mood to see Sonic. As I continued walking I heard what sounded like... sirens. If it was GUN, again, I'd kill them, I didn't want to see them anymore than I did Sonic.

I lifted my head to see four amulances, followed by police cars, racing down the clear streets. Out of curiousity of what was going on, I followed them.

I followed them for twenty-five blocks, until they stopped in front of an apartment building, on fire. Made sense. "Is there anyone else inside?" I heard a policeman ask a fireman.

"A young hedgehog, and her parents, but they're stuck on the top floor." He answered. I stared at the burning building.

_"They won't survive much longer, up there!"_ Was all I thought. I couldn't just stand there, and do nothing!

This in mind, I inhaled deeply, and jumped up, and into the top floor of the apartment building.

-- Inside

Sparks, and flames surrounded my posission near the broken window. I walked through, being careful as to not burn my fur. "Hello!" I yelled. No answer. "Anyone in here? I'm here to help!" I yelled again, continuing straight.

To my right, I heard grunts, and sobs. I went into the room and saw a podium over to adult hedgehogs, male, and female. Right next to them was a young girl, trying to move the podium.

I walked forward, slowly, trying not to startle her. She turned around, and cried of terror as soon as she saw me. I'm used to it. I walked forward, and grabbed the podium, and began to lift it, groaning as I lifted it higher.

When I moved it off her parents, she went immediately to them. I checked their pulses. they were all right, at the current moment. The girl was no staring at me scared. "Don't worry! I'm gonna get you out of here! You, and you're parents, okay?" I told her, softly.

She smiled. "Okay!"

I grabbed my chaos emerald, and made sure they were close enough to be telported. "Chaos Control!" I yelled. The emerald shined brighter, and got us out before the roof could tumble on top of us.

-- Outside

We reappeared in front of the doctors, part of the medical crew. I began to cough, feeling the smoke I gulfed in wanting to stay. They sat me down on the floor of the ambulance, putting a breathe rite srip on my face, to help me breathe, taking it off every now, and again to let me cough out smoke. The other three were put into ambulances, and driven off.

"Nice wrok, Shadow!" The poleman said to me.

"Yeah! You're a hero!" The fireman from before, told me.

_"You won't be calling me that, for long."_ Was the only thought I had, as I continued to cough up smoke.

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Worked hard, plz dont push it!


	2. in spite of sorrow

"Chapter Two;  
In Spite of Sorrow"

I lied back on the door rim of the vehicle, the press snapping pictures, and the police keeping them away from me. Good thing too. I still was in a bad mood, but I felt a little better. I guess helping people is a good thing,... if Sonic would shut up about being a hero, I guess I could feel good for him. I will never say that to his face, though. He'd think I've lost it. He would never let me live it down.

"Out of my way, out of my way!" I heard someone yell as people started flying.

_"Probably Knuckles." _I thought as I continued to breathe with the rite strip on my face. And I was right.

Out of the large crowd, Knuckles had busted though it, Sonic, Amy, Tails, Cream, and Rouge right behind him. Amy and Cream looked at me, horrified. Yeah, my lungs were a bit caught in smoke, but that was it. Well, not true. I guess being in the heat made me feel hot, and light headed, but that was it.

Sonic, Rouge, and Knuckles were all looking at me pretty surprised. Can't say I blame them,... I don't play the part of the hero in public. And they know it's not often I play the hero, period. Sonic's face, suddenly, went from the stunned stare, to a smug smile.

"What are you smiling about?" I asked, coughing out smoke.

"Just surprised. I knew what I said must've gotten to you, but I didn't imagine you'd do this, to prove me wrong. I must say, I'm impressed." Sonic said.

I shot him the deadliest glare I could make, as I removed the rite strip from my face. "I didn't do it to prove you wrong." I said. Sonic's surprised face returned. Rouge, and Knuckles watched, getting entertained, as the others stared in worry. "I did it because I was the only one around who could. That family couldn't get out, and they couldn't get in. I would never let someone, that innocent die like that." I added.

Sonic was still staring, surprised, but I ignored the look. I got down, from where I was sitting, and stood up. I didn't stand long, though. As soon as I stood up, I felt my head spin and tighten. I grabbed the door rim, and leaned back. I heard the others run to me.

"Are you okay?" I heard Cream ask, as they crowded me. I looked down at the little rabbit, staring at me in anguish.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just a little dizzy." I told her. She gave me a relieved smile.

"Need a hand getting home?" Tails asked, concerned.

I shook my head. "No, I can handle." I confirmed him.

"You sure?" He asked. I nodded. "Okay!" He said. The five backed up, as I brought out my green emerald in the dark clearing.

"Chaos control!" With that yell, I disappeared.

I reappeared at my apartment building, in my living room. I couldn't walk to my room, so, I plopped myself on the couch; bringing some covers over my body, and went to sleep.

I woke up the next morning, freezing. _"I swear, if Kale doesn't fix the heating__ soon..."_ I was cold, and I was shaking, violently, what would you expect me to do, but curse my landlord who said he'd fix the heating over two weeks ago.

Now, the phone began to ring. It was Sonic. I picked it up. "What do you want, Faker?" I asked, my voice sounded hoarse.

"You okay?"

"No!" I yelled.

"Kale didn't fix the heat, yet?" He asked of shock.

"Yeah, what do you want?" My voice still in the same tone.

There was a short pause, before I heard a sigh from Sonic. "Turn on Channel 12!" He ordered.

I wasn't in the mood for something about him, but to shut him up, I turned on the tv to Channel 12. It was a broadcast about my job, the previous day. "As of late yesterday, Shadow the Hedgehog risked his life to save a family of three; a mother, father, and young, eight year old girl. The three hedgehogs were immediately sent to the hospital, and the people, though stunned, felt a little safer because of this dark hero. We're, now heading over to Frank, live from the GUN station after a live boarding. Frank?" I waited. So far, I was liking it.

"Thank you, Lisa! As of a couple hours after Shadow's great, and heroic performance, GUN had held a manditory meeting, speaking of the incident." I smirked,... the commander would've been surprised. "The Commander claimed, though, it was a great effort, and that the three would've been thankful, it didn't make a difference as to what Shadow was." I shot a glare. "This claim was made after the briefing that the hedgehog parents had died of the massive burns they had recieved in the fire. The commander had blamed Shadow for such occurance."

Was he kidding me?! I did what I did, it's not my fault the doctors couldn't help! "Do you agree with this?" Lisa asked.

"As a matter of fact, like most of the people in Mobius, I think we're merely staring at a hedgehog that finds it hard to be good, since he's not treated well. Shadow has saved us several times, and to show that he'd save innocent people, individually, I'd have to disagree with the commander's claim." Frank said.

"I feel the same. Shadow the hedgehog has now been changed from a villanous crook, to a more neutral character, in my eyes. In all truth, Shadow may be more of a good guy, than bad. I'm happy to call him our hero, and hope I still can." With that, I shut the tv off.

Me? A hero? I could only hope Sonic wouldn't jump to conclusions, with this. But something else got to me. The little girl lost her parents, she probably wasn't even told yet. She was only eight, too. She wouldn't be happy, when she heard this.

"I'm impressed Shadow, you made the morning news. Also, check out the paper!" He said. I got up, blanket over my shoulders, and opened the front door, to get the paper, still in its bag.

I got it out of the bag, and stared at the front paper. "Dark Hero Arrised?" I questioned.

"Yep! Shadow, all of Mobius saw that broadcast, and are going to see that page. They know what you did, and now, most of them think you're a hero! Isn't it great?!" He asked, excitedly. If I were to give him any truth, I'd say I'm still used to the whol nonpublicity thing.

"If I'm a hero, sonic, then how did I let that girl's parents die?" I asked.

He was silent. "Shadow,... that wasn't your fault, and the Commander can't prove that! You did the right thing, but I guess, fate takes a coarse in everyone's life. That girl would be happy you tried." Sonic said.

"Yeah right." With that, I hung up. What if it was my fault? What if I did kill them? I shook my head, and got rid of the questions. If there was one thing I would do, it's tell her, before GUN tells her it was my fault, and before more guilt came.

I grabbed my Chaos Emerald. "Chaos control, now!" With that I disappeared, again.

I arrived inside the hospital, away from the windows; outside would've been a bad idea, since the press was there, watching out for me. Normally for Sonic, but today, me.

I came up to the counter, the human female looked up at me. "You here to see that girl, you saved?" She asked. I nodded. "Avoided the press?" Again, a nod. "This way." She said, leading me to the elevator.

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U will c wht happens nxt chapter.


	3. truths and virtuous words

hope u like it!

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"Chapter Three;  
Truths and Virtuous Words"

We went up to the sixth floor, and went down the long hallway. I heard people crying, and a woman yelling. "You have to do something about that monster!" I heard the woman yell from one of the waiting rooms.

"We will handle him as soon as possible." A calm, male voice said.

The commander,...probably here to show 'simpathy' for the family. Yeah, right! He was only here to make himself look better. In all honesty, how much worse could this get? It was a family member that hated me.

We walked passed the room, hoping they didn't notice me. We continued down, then the woman turned to her right. Room #639. She opened the door, and stood aside.

I slowly walked in, looking at the sleeping girl. It didn't look that bad, but I could tell it was. She was probably burned in a place less visible, so I didn't bother to look.

I turned back, looking at the woman, still at the door. She simpley nodded, and shut the door, as she left.

I turned back to the young girl. I looked at the clipboard at the end of her bed. 'Crystal Arrow' is what it said. I put it back, and walked closer to her, getting a better look.

Her fur was sky blue, and her arms had a white stripe on them, leading to her neck. Their wasn't much else I could tell, except that she was wearing one of those hospital dresses. The young hedgehog opened her eyes, revealing a soft violet in them.

She began to sit up, struggling as she did so. I helped her sit up. when I sat back down, she looked at me, and smiled. "Shadow, right?" She asked. I raised an eyebrow (does he have any?). "My Aunt Jillian always complains about why you're not arrested. I don't see why you should be." She said.

I now, knew who it was who was yelling at the commander, and could only hope to get passed her, when I left. I nodded, and sighed. "Crystal, right?" I asked her, softly, while trying to sound like I wasn't caring.

She nodded, a large grin on her face. "Uh-huh!" She said. She sounded so cheerful, and as if she were five, still. Hard to believe she was eight. I looked at her, I felt the sad expression come to show. She gave me an anguished look. "What's wrong?" She asked.

I sighed again. "It's about...your parents." I answered.

She cocked her head to the side. "Why? They're alright, aren't they?" She asked.

_"I hate it when I'm right, sometimes."_ I thought. I cleared my throat. "I don't know how to tell you this, Crystal, but I can only make it as simple as I'm going to say it,..." She straightened her head, and stared at me. "You're parents aren't going to be leaving with you, not alive, as in. What I'm trying to say is,..." Her expression began to sadden. "Your parents died, earlier this morning. The burns were too critical, and I got them out too late. I'm sorry, Crystal." I finished.

She reacted differently than I expected. I expected her to cry, or wail, even, but instead, she leaned forward, and hugged me. There was only a single tear that was soaked up by my fur.

"I guessed they would be. They said there was no saving them, but I still had to try, like you tried." She said, looking up at me, a small smile on her face, and sadness in her eyes. "My parents always said that when someone dies, there's another person, your living savior waiting to find you. It could be a lover, or family, but you never know, until it already happens." She said.

I could only stare. "What do you mean?" I asked, my voice still pretty quiet.

She lit up. "Don't blame yourself for what happened Shadow, please! It does hurt that they're gone, but I know that there's still someone ready to see me, and I'm ready. You don't need to worry! I'll be strong, just like you're strong. You have to make sure that you can let go of what's hurting you, otherwise, it'll only hurt more,..." She paused, and looked away. Eyes of understanding, soon looked back at me. "just like you haven't, and that it's still hard to let go." She said.

I sat there, shocked. An eight year old girl just gave me a lecture, and, from the looks of things, she just sank into my past, without any trouble at all. "How do you...?" I asked.

"Mommy always said I could read people like a book." She said.

I thought it over. It would make sense if it were Sonic, Knuckles, or even Rouge, but with me, the young hedgehog could see right into. I sighed, and stood up. "Well, um,...bye!" I, finally said, turning around, ready to leave.

"Ya know what?" I heard her start up, I paused, and looked back at her. "You might cover up, a lot, but I can see that you're a good person. You're...like my dad, in a lot of ways." She said, lying back.

A couple seconds later, she was asleep. I was shocked. Me? Like a dad? Yeah, right! With that out of the way, I chaos controlled back to my apartment building, ready to punch Kale if he didn't fix the heating. It was the middle of autumn, heading to winter, I wasn't going to wait any longer.

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hope ya liked it.


	4. how the innocent suffer

"Chapter Four;  
How The Innocent Suffer"

I was packing a lot of things. When I met up with Kale, I realized his room had all the heating making it feel like summer. I had told everybody, and they were on his ass; I swear, I couldn't stop laughing. Kale, when he was done getting what he deserved, had told me that as soon as my lease expired, he wanted me gone, and thankfully, that was at the end of the month. I said no problem, figuring everybody else would in the process, and began to search for a house.

I found a nice place, and it was a deal I could afford, seeing as how the house was old, and nobody thought it was worth anything. When I called the electric company, they said they'd have everything set up as soon as the real estate agent called. When I got that out of the way, I made a call to said agent, and told her to have it ready before I began to move in. I had a tour to go on, and papers to sign, then I was set.

I moved another box to the coffee table, and set it down with a sigh. All that was really left to pack were socks, gloves, and those extra clothes I was given; which reminded me that I needed something.

I went straight back into the dully painted bedroom, opened the closet door, and pulled out that weirdly tan colored turtle neck Rose gave me last Christmas. I didn't like it, but I didn't own any other sweaters, and I somehow knew I'd need it. Since it was fucking below thirty degrees, I felt a lot better once I put it on; I **_officially_** owed Rose an apology. I told her that never would I become so desperate as to put on the piece of trash, and I ended up being wrong. The thing itched, but hey, I wasn't complaining about the warmth it was giving me.

This day was my last day at the apartment. I was going to be spending time with Rouge until I was settled, and I just needed to finish up before I went over there. I put my clothes in a box; which really wasn't all that big because of the amount of clothes I owned; then picked up my box of silver wear, and head out to my car.

I continued to drive straight for a little while, but only minutes after I got onto the road, rain came down. That was fine, but it got heavier, and the winds were beginning to speed up, and I could see the roads starting to flood. Being a smart driver, I turned on the weather station. **"Severe gusts are blowing at a rate of near fifty miles per hour, and thunderstorms seem to be raging throughout the area, and I can personally say with the flooding, if you're driving, get to shelter, for the winds seem to be only speeding up."**

"Dammit!" I yelled, slamming the button and turning the thing off. Not what I needed on my moving day! Everything was fine before this, and now it was hell. Rouge's place was another forty-five minutes away, and with the weather the way it was, I was gonna end up in a car wreck before fifteen minutes even passed, that much I knew.

I looked around for a stable building that I could stop in, and with how hard it was raining, that was hard to find. I found one about ten minutes down the road, and drove into the driveway. The place looked like an old Victorian house, however it was restored so the house held high quality as far as the exterior goes. The windows were large, and the paint seemed to have been a firm coat to it, probably added a few years ago.

I exchanged my sweater with a coat, dare not being seen in public with it on. As soon as I put on the black raincoat, I ran up the steps, but when I got to the door, I was being greeted in by some weird female human in glasses. I don't like paying attention to them, but she was being nice. "Please, put your coat on the rack." She favored me, pointing at the wall. I saw there that there were a lot of coats; all kid sizes. The human seemed to have caught onto my confusion. "This is Lockhearte's Foster Housing. I understand you came in because of the weather, but the only adult visitors we get are ones who are interested in adoption. If you'd like, I could at least show you the kids so that Cain doesn't kick you out." She offered. I accepted to make sure I didn't have to go back out there.

The human, Karen, as I soon learned, led me to the play room where most of the kids were. That's where I met Cain Lockhearte; guy had a big heart for kids, I could tell, but he didn't tolerate any form of grown ups unless they were interested in the child's well being, and were there to adopt; best business man I've ever met.

He took me away from the woman and began to point out all sorts of different children, describing them to high detail. I payed attention and commented every now and again so that way he believed I was still interested in something. I'll admit it, I'm surprised he could memorize so many names, let alone remember these things about them. He must _really_ like his job. "Over there we have a new one; she lost her parents because of burns from a fire. Her favorite color is turquoise blue, and she's a fantastic artist. She's very playful, but for some reason, the other children won't invite her over to. She's very sweet, though, and practically reads people like a book. I believe her name was...Crystal."

This time I actually looked at who he pointed out. It was the exact same girl I saved from the fire the other day. She was at a table, by herself, and I could easily see the sad smile on her face. She obviously wasn't over what had happened, even if she forgave him, but there was more, her eyes told him this, for they kept on diverting to the other kids that were playing.

I looked up at the large human that could only remind me of the enlarged stuffed bear Cream used for a pillow at her house. "She does seem lonely..." I muttered to him, my eyes looking back at her. I couldn't hold that part in me. Ever since her parents died, even if she had forgiven me for being unable to stop it, I couldn't help but feel responsible for their deaths. I knew I didn't kill them, but that guilt still never left me.

We watched as the children came up to her, all snickering. I couldn't hear what they said, but it was pretty obvious they were antagonizing her due to the effect of her crying. "Excuse me!" Cain told me, walking over to them. I watched as he lectured the kids on their behavior, who ran off scared when he was finished. After which, he knelt next to Crystal, trying to soothe her, but all he did was get her to run to a different part of the room.

I spent the remainder of the storm there. Cain had talked a lot about the responsibility of a parent, and how children who were adopted reflect both off of the parents they grew to love, and the parents that took them in. I found myself actually paying attention to the man, surprisingly enough. I even found myself asking questions that he'd answer, quite happily. It felt like when I was talking to Cream; I couldn't help but listen with sheer interest and curiosity picking at my mind, wanting me to dig further into the conversation. These things seemed to have only allowed the man to like me.

When the storm ended, Cain showed me to the door. The only thing on his face besides the enjoyment of the conversation we were having was disappointment. He knew full well that I'd stayed there for a good few hours, and that I had to get moving, so I could get Rouge's house, and make preparations for the house I was going to buy. Honestly, I was surprised I maintained a good conversation with him, but what got me off was the fact I wanted to talk to him more, as well; only reason I didn't was because the bat known as my teammate would have my ass.

Just as I left, Cain had told me something that caught so far off guard, I couldn't even remember for however long I had thought it over, nor had it ever left my mind. "You know, if you ever wanted to, you could make a good, if not so, fantastic father. Ya just need a chance, and I'm sure any child would be happy to live with you!" With that, I left the orphanage, shocked, and almost completely disorientated from my surroundings. Why would I not be? Once again, I was told by somebody I could be a parent, and this was after seeing the one kid that I saved; the one that, when I looked at her, or even heard of her, I couldn't help but blame myself for what happened to her parents.

That night, with Rouge, I still couldn't get it out of my mind. Hell, I couldn't even sleep! All three of these days just tied a huge knot into the back of my mind, and I couldn't rid myself of it. I tried to, but everything was just so...complicated, now. So much so, I had trouble contemplating it; unable to set my mind straight, and unable to push aside the emotion rising onto my face, almost completely unaware of it.

I fell asleep in that guest room, feeling tears starting to trail down the sides of my face. It was the first time I sobbed since Maria's death...


End file.
